Cheers,
Just want to send a “quick” email saying that Valerie and I had been at the other Apollo Victoria Theatre where we saw Wicked and not at the Apollo West End where The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night was playing and where the roof caved in last night. Pretty scary. I remember when part of our just renovated Vinton Branch Library collapsed, but the quick thinking of the staff who worked there got everyone out unhurt. Of course it was a much smaller space, but still very scary. The Apollo Victoria theatre holds 2208 people! I think it was quite full too and some performances when I looked for Ticketmaster tickets were sold out!!!
Both Valerie and I thoroughly enjoyed our experience at the Apollo. We had super seats, 3rd row of the stalls in the middle of the row so we felt “in the play” at times. It was definitely worth the ton of money we paid for our tickets. I’ve learned since then, better to go to Leicester Square and stand in line and pay a whole lot less. (We have cruising friends who are giving the gift of “line standing for them” to their visiting daughter and her partner.) But Valerie and I had a specific play to see and a specific date so I opted for Ticketmaster. And it was almost watching the play on DoraMac. We only had to walk the 5 minutes to the Tube at Tower Hill and then get off at Victoria to walk the 5 minutes to the theatre. Really easy.
The performance was wonderful. Harry Potter meets Legally Blond meets Thelma and Louise with a very tiny bit of Ann Frank. Sound intriguing? Made me want to revisit The Wizard of Oz. One of my favorite TV shows when I can see it is Once Upon A Time which has now added Elphaba, The Wicked Witch of the West, who I can no longer see as Wicked but really rather heroic! I liked the music quite a bit too. Made me want to see more plays while we’re here.
I have no photos; sorry. Didn’t even think to bring my camera because I was afraid they’d not be allowed in. Actually none of the places Valerie and I visited allowed photos, Wicked, St Paul’s Cathedral or Westminster Abbey. I could actually concentrate on the tour guide! But I am really sorry I have no photos to share.
Yesterday afternoon Randal and I went on a London Walks. It was “The Blitz” and focused on the area around St Paul’s Cathedral. Very sad but very interesting. I did take photos then and eventually will get around to writing all the stories we heard.
So that’s about it for today. Our Chinese daughter Singkey is arriving today from Birmingham University. She will spend several weeks with us during her winter break. For her it will be only partly break as she has her Master’s thesis to work on. But we will do some fun things too.
Ru
Synopsis and Song List
The musical begins in sorcery school where two young students, Elphaba and Galinda, are thrown together in a tumultuous relationship that will span ambition, morality, love and eventually friendship. At first, bubbly Galinda clashes with down-to-earth Elphaba, a conflict further complicated by the fact they both begin to have feelings for Fiyero, a Winkie prince. However, they both realise their powers as sorceresses and work together to fight the oppressive regime of the Wizard, who is slowly but surely stripping away the rights of Animals. As Elphaba’s power threatens the establishment, she must decide if she is willing to risk everything to save Oz.
Apollo Victoria Theatre
17 Wilton Road
Westminster
London
SW1V 1LG
Currently showcasing hit musical Wicked, the Apollo Victoria Theatre has a heritage dating back to 1929 when it was opened as a state-of-the-art cinema, commissioned by Provincial Cinematograph Theatres (PCT) to accommodate the growing popularity of ‘talking pictures’. The theatre was designed by the architect Ernest Walmsley Lewis along an Art Deco style that still remains to this day; upon its official opening in 1930, the Gaumont British News charmingly called the interior of the theatre ‘a fairy cavern under the sea, or a mermaid’s dream of heaven’. In the decades following the theatre, known as the New Victoria Cinema, was renowned as a place to watch film, variety and even big band performances within walking distance of bustling Victoria Station.
Past Shows
Despite its cinematic origins, the building closed in 1975 and was reopened as the New Victoria Theatre, shifting its focus on to more musical content. A concert was scheduled to celebrate the new opening, with Shirley Bassey performing as a headline act! The theatre hosted a series of well-loved musicals in the late seventies and early eighties including Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music and Camelot, before becoming the venue for the debut performances of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s exciting new musical Starlight Express. The interior of the auditorium was completely redesigned for the production, with race tracks running through the audience and modifications to incorporate a split-level rollerskating rink.
The rehaul proved to be entirely justified when Starlight Express went on to have huge success, playing at the theatre for an amazing 18 years before finally closing in 2002 to make way for another Lloyd Webber musical, the Bollywood-inspired Bombay Dreams. The A. H. Rahman production ran for two successful years before ending in 2004, after which it was followed by the classic Saturday Night Fever for a brief stint and then Movin’ Out, the Billy Joel musical. This moved out in February 2006 to allow for preparations for Wicked, which opened in September the same year to rapturous praise and overwhelming commercial success, with the musical presently going from strength to strength and showing no signs of slowing down for the foreseeable future.
The Apollo Victoria Theatre is one of London’s largest theatres, with the capacity to seat 2208 people during a performance. It is built on two levels; the upper tier, known as the Circle, and the lower tier closest to the stage, known as the Stalls.
Levels
Unlike a lot of other London theatres the Apollo Victoria is only split across two levels as opposed to three or four. This does have its advantages, as it means that whatever price you pay you are unlikely to be stuck right up in the gods on the fourth tier, although it can make choosing your seat a little harder as it is difficult to know which tickets provide the best value for money.
Access and Facilities
•A cloakroom is available
•There are bars on both levels
•There are male and female toilets located on both levels
•Wheelchair access is available on the Circle level